@IvanCNN: Hong Kong’s main commercial district gridlocked by anti-government protest, 1st march organized by main protest group that authorities didn’t object to since August. Mass defiance, despite 1000s of arrests, 10,000 rounds of tear gas, & economic recession after 6 months of unrest

@ezracheungtoto: Organiser of the march, Civil Human Rights Front, estimates today’s turnout at 800,000 while the police force says there were 183,000 people participating in the march at its peak. A peaceful march has become a rare scene after several months of violence.

@ezracheungtoto: This banner set has largely captured why Hong Kong people are so keen on the five demands they have been raising over the past six months. As they think freedoms are being eroded by Beijing, the city might turn to another Xinjiang, where freedoms are crashed.

@JOceanW: Lennon cloth spotted on Queensway in Admiralty. A volunteer handing out pieces of cloth says they’re collecting messages to form huge lennon cloths to be placed at restaurants and hopefully for exhibition later.

October162019

«The months-long protests in Hong Kong have also been studied in Indonesia by students who took to the streets to oppose new laws, and Extinction Rebellion climate activists in the UK, but it is the Catalonia protests that appear to be most directly inspired by the Hong Kong playbook. For weeks, Catalan activists have examined the techniques of Hong Kong’s protesters closely, taking notes on what works and what might be successfully replicated in Catalonia. In late September, the grassroots group Assemblea Nacional Catalana even held a public forum titled, “Experiences of the use of new technologies in the nonviolent struggle: the case of Hong Kong.”»

October122019

«Police brutality is not only strengthening protestors’ resolve, it has also swelled their numbers. Between the violent clashes, people have repeatedly turned out in their millions to protest heavy-handed policing; an independent inquiry has become a key demand at demonstrations.

The police have arrested more than 2,000 people, some as young as 12, the oldest in their 70s. The sight of injured protesters and mass detentions have spurred on others including many Hong Kong residents who say they previously shunned politics, to turn out in support.

“Before when people were gathering and they deployed so many riot police, some people would try to leave. Now they don’t,” said Cathy Lam, 24, part of a crowd of local residents from West Kowloon who waited hours to support protesters being arrested on a bus there. “You can see the conflict between police and citizens escalating day by day.”

There is a risk that violence – and the damage and shutdowns linked to chaotic protests – may alienate supporters, both in Hong Kong and overseas, and provide pro-Beijing critics with ammunition. Chinese state media widely reports examples of vandalism and attacks by protesters.

Yet so far, protesters have largely contained both the extent and focus of their violence, directing it at symbols of the government they are opposing. While authorities have denounced them as rioters, there is little of the random smashing and looting that characterises most riots.

“The so-called vandalism they have done is really exceptional, because here it is only focused on targets related to ‘injustice’ they see,” said professor Lawrence Ka-ki Ho, a specialist in policing and public order management at the Education University of Hong Kong.

“Most vandalism would have indiscriminate targets, but their targets are the metro stations, the police stations – not the luxurious shops, not M&S.”

For the police, by contrast, escalating violence has been disastrous, both sapping their support and bolstering opposition. Yet once authorities or protesters are locked into violence, it becomes difficult for either side to step away.

Negotiations to end the stand-off, which would always be fraught, are particularly problematic in Hong Kong, both because there are no real channels of communication between authorities and protesters, and also because the movement doesn’t have any identified leaders.

This is in part because of sweeping round-ups of prominent figures during past protests, and part reflection of the grassroots nature of the movement which has taken as its motto ‘be like water’ – fast-moving, powerful, but hard to grasp or block.

So even if city authorities want to negotiate, it is not clear if there is anyone with power to call people off the streets.»

«Fans in China are calling for an explanation – if they are not getting it from the Houston Rockets, then it is natural that they ask others associated with the NBA to express a view.

The NBA is a fan-first league. When hundreds of millions of fans are furious over an issue, the league, and anyone associated with the NBA, will have to pay attention. As a Governor of one of the 30 NBA teams, and a Chinese having spent a good part of my professional life in China, I need to speak up.

What is the problem with people freely expressing their opinion? This freedom is an inherent American value and the NBA has been very progressive in allowing players and other constituents a platform to speak out on issues.

The problem is, there are certain topics that are third-rail issues in certain countries, societies and communities.

Supporting a separatist movement in a Chinese territory is one of those third-rail issues, not only for the Chinese government, but also for all citizens in China.»